


Something New || Liam Payne AU

by lisavslisa



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: 1d, Alcohol, Alternate Universe - College/University, Awkward Crush, Awkwardness, College, Crush, Developing Relationship, Drama, Embarrassment, England - Freeform, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Falling In Love, Flirting, Fluff, Fluff and Smut, Fluffy Liam, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Friendship/Love, Liam - Freeform, Liam Payne - Freeform, London, Love, Lovers, Lust, Minor Niall Horan, Non-Famous, Non-Famous One Direction, Payne - Freeform, Resolved Sexual Tension, Roommates, Sex, Sexual Content, Sexual Tension, Shy, Shy Girl, UK - Freeform, University, flatmates, friends - Freeform, minor harry styles, minor larry stylinson, minor louis tomlinson, minor zayn malik, one direction - Freeform, relationship, uni - Freeform, uni students
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-15
Updated: 2021-03-07
Packaged: 2021-03-16 21:33:40
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 7,749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29460579
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lisavslisa/pseuds/lisavslisa
Summary: Maxine was sure she had her life under control. She was a top student at Uni and had five great lads to share her grandparent’s home with. That was until she started to let her feelings for a certain lad get to her. On top of it all, he was her flatmate – his bedroom right down the hall from hers. After an embarrassing moment puts Max’s feelings out in the open, she’s forced to confront the way she feels about him and question whether or not she’s willing to ruin the happy medium they’ve created in their home for a chance with him.
Relationships: Liam Payne/Original Female Character(s)
Kudos: 2





	1. Part One

**Author's Note:**

> **This will just be a short five part story. I'm almost done with the last part, so updates should be fast. I hope you like it. Leave comments and kudos if you do!**

Maxine came walking across the backyard, a football slung under her left arm, her eyes set on the five lads warming up for their impending game of three-on-three.

“You’re all taking this quite serious, yeah?” Max quips, watching as Louis – the only one of them with any _real_ football experience – bends completely over, touching his toes for a moment before he stands back up, smirking at Max. 

“Football _is_ quite serious,” he says. Max snorts and tosses the football at Louis. He easily juggles the ball with his knees and feet as Max begins to twist and stretch her upper body, knowing it isn’t a bad idea to loosen herself up.

“So skins and shirts then?” Harry asks about the teams, standing with his hands on his bare hips. 

“Whatever team Max is on is the skins!” Louis calls out. Max’s head snaps toward Louis, sending him a glare.

“ _Louis_ ,” Harry sighs – neither truly upset nor truly surprised by his boyfriend’s comment. 

“What? I can still appreciate a nice pair of tits,” Louis says, holding his hands out in front of him, mimicking two large breasts.

“Foul,” Max laughs, shaking her head.

“Max and Harry, call your teams,” Zayn says, breaking up the conversation.

“How did we become the captains?” Max asks.

“Because you’re both the worst,” Niall snickers.

“Fuck all of you,” Max laughs, rolling her eyes at them.

“Louis,” Harry calls first, which isn’t surprising in the least. 

“Next game we’re making a rule that you can’t pick the person you’re sleeping with,” Niall says as he rolls his eyes.

“I won’t allow it,” Louis says, leaning up to kiss Harry’s lips quickly.

“Max? You’re next,” Zayn says. Max knows exactly who she wants to pick, her eyes falling on Liam, who is still idly stretching.

“Uh, Niall,” Max says instead, feeling her cheeks heat up as her eyes finally dart away from Liam’s athletic frame.

“Liam,” Harry calls out next and she can noticeably feel her heart sink.

“Zayn. And I promise you would have been my next pick even if you weren’t the last person left,” Max says, smiling at Zayn.

“Yeah, yeah,” Zayn says, sounding bored, but smirks at her anyway. 

“You’re going down!” Niall says to the other three lads on the opposing team.

“Not bloody likely,” Louis laughs as he pulls his t-shirt off and tosses it onto the ground. Max can’t help it when her eyes drag across Liam’s abs when he too takes off his shirt. She takes a deep breath moments later and rolls her neck, closing her eyes to try to center herself.

“Max, what’s our strategy going to be?” Niall asks her. Max’s eyes shoot open, looking straight at Niall.

“To win,” she says evenly and watches as Niall’s lips turn up into a wide smile.

“You’re a bloody genius, Max,” Zayn says sarcastically, sending her a mischievous smile.

“Cause I’m _really_ the person to ask about bloody strategy in a footie match. You literally just told me I’m the worst at this game like two minutes ago,” Max says, letting out a laugh.

“You _are_ the worst. Well, maybe not the _worst_ ,” Niall says, looking up at Harry.

“I heard that!” Harry calls out to Niall. Max can’t help but laugh out loud.

“Let’s just play,” Liam says, tossing the ball between them.

Max smiles to herself as she readies herself to, most likely, lose the game. But winning doesn’t matter to her. She just loves spending time with her mates. She really does love every last one of them. Even with all their odd quirks and habits. She wouldn’t trade any of them.

…

The story of how the six of them came to live together is actually quite simple to explain. First there was Maxine, who inherited the house they co-inhabited. Not wanting to live alone in her grandparent’s old home, Maxine asked her best friend Harry to move in with her. Harry’s boyfriend of two years, Louis, moved in during the first week of Uni, having forgotten to get his housing slips in time to get a room in the dormitories. 

The three of them lived in the big old house for an entire semester, finding a perfect rhythm with each other throughout that time. Harry and Louis took the largest room upstairs, being that there were two of them. Maxine took the room next to theirs, mainly because it held significant meaning to her. It was the room her mother grew up in, and it was also her Gran’s room for the last few years of her life before she died.

Zayn came next, taking the last of the rooms upstairs. Louis and Zayn knew each other from primary school, and ran into each other one day on campus, not knowing they went to the same University. After getting to know Zayn, and after hearing about his horrendous roommate, the three of them decided to invite him to live with them.

Niall came after Zayn, having answered an advert Harry placed as a joke for a “roommate wanted”. The four of them decided to interview the Irish lad since he went through all the trouble to reply to the poster and whatnot. Niall fit right in immediately and took the attic, which was converted into a bedroom just for him.

The five of them lived together for nearly a year. But when Zayn mentioned his best mate Liam – whom they’d all met on several occasions – needed a place to room, they welcomed Liam in like he was meant to be there all along. Liam took over Zayn’s old bedroom on the upper level while Zayn moved down to the basement because there was more room to do his art.

With six roommates, six entirely different personalities, the house sometimes seemed like it might burst at the seams, but they all loved and respected each other. It wasn’t long until they became a family. Though, it wasn’t exactly easy for Maxine to live with so much testosterone all the time. Sometimes she felt like she was going to lose it, but she did what she could to make the best of the situation. And it was a little bit easier for her once Liam moved in…

Sure, she found the other four lads to be quite attractive, but Harry was her gay best friend, Louis was his boyfriend, Zayn had a girlfriend, and Niall – well, yes – Niall was attractive. But things changed for Maxine once Liam moved in. The way she looked at him, the way she thought about him was different than any other person. She tried to bury the nagging feeling. She tried her best to stave off the blush that crept up her cheeks in his presence. But Liam was just so sweet, and extremely good looking. She had a rough go at it. And it only got more difficult as the days went on.

…

Max is caught completely off guard by the football soaring straight at her head. She doesn’t even have time to flinch before it hits her smack in the temple, her body toppling to the ground from the sheer force of it.

“Max!” Harry calls out.

“Holy fuck!” Max groans, holding her hand against the side of her head as she lay on her back on the grass.

She hears all the lads rush to her side, but she can only see Liam standing above her with the sunlight framing him perfectly, looking like some sort of an angel.

“You okay, Maxine?” Liam asks as he bends down to look at her. Somehow she loves the way he says her full name.

“The fucking football… it… it…” Max stammers, feeling her temple throbbing.

“It spiked off your head!” Niall laughs a bit too loudly.

“Shut it, Horan,” Liam snaps at him and Max can’t help but feel honored that Liam is standing up for her.

“How many fingers am I holding up?” Louis butts in and suddenly two of his fingers are thrust into Max’s face.

“Two. I haven’t gone mental. I’m fine,” Max says, finally trying to sit up. Liam immediately grabs her arm to help her.

“Who kicked it?” Max asks, looking up at the five of them one-by-one. And somehow she _knows_ when her eyes land on Harry standing there looking guilty.

“I didn’t mean to, Maxine. Honest,” Harry says, throwing in a quick _‘I’m sorry’_ at the end.

“Told yah he was the worst,” Niall chimes in.

“Not helping, Niall,” Zayn scolds him, but still laughs anyway.

“Here. I’ll help you up,” Liam says, holding out his hand. Max grabs it hesitantly and Liam practically does all the work, hoisting her up on her feet. Her head feels a bit wonky and her feet aren’t sure what to do, causing her to stagger a bit.

“Whoa. Are you sure you’re okay?” Liam asks, steadying Max with his arm slung around her back.

“I think we should win by default since your team was aiming to sabotage our team,” Niall suggests.

“Not bleeding likely!” Louis calls out.

“I didn’t mean to, Max. I’m sorry,” Harry says again, looking truly pained that he kicked a football at his best friend’s head.

“I know you didn’t mean to, Harry. It’s okay,” Max tells him.

“Not okay. We win,” Niall says simply.

“ _Pssh_. It’s about the only way you were going to win,” Louis says under his breath.

“Tommo with the jokes,” Niall says to Zayn.

“So, like, are we done playing then?” Zayn asks as he juggles the ball back and forth between his knees and his feet.

“Might as well if Max is concussed,” Louis says, causing Harry to look even more pained than he already is.

“I’m not concussed,” Max snaps, giving Louis a light shove.

“Sorry. Bloody sorry,” Louis snickers.

“You gonna be okay, Max?” Zayn asks, showing mild concern.

“Lads, I’m just fine,” Max says, looking between the lot of them.

“Glad to hear it. I call shower!” Zayn calls out with a mischievous smirk on his face.

“Not if I get there first!” Niall challenges him, and they both make a run for it.

“Are you really okay, Max?” Liam asks, looking straight into Max’s eyes. She’s certain if she wasn’t focusing so hard on standing, her knees might have weakened right then and there with him looking at her like she is the most important thing to him.

“I’m fine. I promise,” Max tries to assure him.

“Are you certain?” He asks.

“I am certain. I’m just tired and… and sweaty…” She says, and cringes immediately at her words. Yes, make yourself sound as unattractive as possible to the guy you like. _Good thinking, Maxine._

“I think we’re all tired and sweaty.” Liam smiles at her.

“Max, I heard you shouldn’t go to sleep right after you get hit in the head. You might think you don’t have a concussion, but you could and not even know it. So uh, don’t go take a nap or anything,” Harry says, sounding genuinely worried.

“I promise I won’t take a nap. I just need a shower,” Max says as Liam finally draws his arm back and allows her to stand on her own.

“What if you faint in the shower?” Harry asks her.

“I’ll be fine,” she tells him.

“But what if you’re not?” He asks, stepping up in front of her, his eyes roaming over every inch of her face.

“I’m fine, Styles. I’m not going to die from a football to the head. You’re not going to get rid of me that easily,” she says, making a joke out of it.

“But you could fall in the shower…” Harry continues.

“Harry. Seriously?” Louis laughs.

“I am not about to allow any one of you to babysit me while I’m in the shower. I draw the line, okay?” Max says as she turns toward the house and makes her way across the yard.

“I really am sorry, Maxine,” Harry says from behind her.

“I accept your apology, okay. Now can we drop it?” She asks him as pleasantly as she can as she opens the back door and enters the house.

“I just feel really badly,” Harry continues.

“I love you, Harry. But please just drop it. I promise you, I am fine,” Max says, stopping right in front of him to look in his eyes.

“Okay,” Harry says with a nod.

“Thank you for your concern,” she says finally. He nods again and watches as she turns toward the stairs.

“I’ll start dinner in a little bit,” Harry tells the group.

“Good. I’m starving,” Louis says as he tosses the football on the floor and slumps down on the couch, kicking off his shoes.

Max takes the stairs up toward her bedroom when she hears Louis say, “don’t die on us, Max.” She turns her head to look at him before she holds up her middle finger in response. Louis lets out a howl of a laugh and Max can’t help but laugh too.

…

It wasn’t long after the six of them started living together that Wednesday night dinners sort of became a tradition. It was the only night out of the week when all of them were home at the same time. So they’d all switch off making dinner. Sometimes it would end up just being pizza or Chinese food – especially during finals. But they all made the effort to make it to the dinners.

“Smells fantastic,” Zayn says as he takes his seat next to Niall at the table. 

As Louis walks into the room to take a seat he looks around the table at the three of them, “is dinner ready? Where’s Haz?”

“You know Harry. He’s in the kitchen, probably making a proper big production out of the meal,” Max snickers, causing Louis to laugh blithely. 

“Every time,” he replies.

“Where’s Li?” Zayn asks curiously.

“I heard the shower running a bit ago. Not sure if he heard dinner was ready.” Louis shrugs, watching Zayn nod before making a move to stand up.

“I’ve got it, Zayn. I’ll let him know,” Maxine says as she stands on her feet.

She actually really feels the need to thank Liam for the way he helped her earlier. He was the only one to show true concern for her after she got hit with the football – well, maybe Harry too, but she feels like maybe it was mainly the guilt that fueled him.

Maxine feels her heart begin to race at just the thought of seeing Liam. It’s actually quite ridiculous since they live together and see each other nearly every day. But it’s something she can’t control, really. She doesn’t think she wants to. She enjoys the blissful fleeting feelings she gets when she’s in his presence. She likes the butterflies in her stomach, and the way her body reacts to him. She knows nothing will ever come of it since she’d decided long ago she would never date one of the roommates. She doesn’t want to be the one to bring drama into their peaceful existence in the house.

She takes a deep breath as she rounds the corner toward Liam’s room. And with a soft knock, she pushes open the already cracked door.

“Liam? Dinner’s read—” Maxine says before the air drains from her lungs and the words stop short on her tongue.

Liam’s standing in front of her completely nude, his body still glistening with water droplets from the shower. They both freeze in their tracks like deer in headlights. And in those few moments, Max gets quite an eyeful.

“Max—”

“ _Shit_ . Wow, shit. I’m sorry, Liam. I’m sorry. _Shit_ ,” Max stammers, her brain finally linking up with her body. She quickly turns, shielding her eyes with her hand, “dinner’s ready. That’s uh, that’s why I came up here. I should’ve knocked. I’m sorry. _Shit_.”

Without another glance back, Maxine flees in the same direction she came.


	2. Part Two

Maxine is absolutely flustered as she makes her way back down the stairs after walking in on Liam in all his glory. A vision that would most definitely be burned in her brain for years to come. Instead of going back to the dining room she heads for the kitchen. Her face is still burning red with blush, and she’s one hundred percent certain she doesn’t want to face the other lads until she gets a chance to cool down. She figures she might run into Harry, but Harry is her best mate and she can handle him. Luckily when she turns the corner to the kitchen she finds it empty.

She steps up to the sink basin and steadies her hands against it, taking in a deep breath. How the hell did that just happen? _Why? Dear god, why?_ As if she didn’t act weird enough around Liam already. She just _had_ to walk in on him naked.

“Maxine! Liam!” She hears Harry bellow a moment later, and she knows she can’t hide away much longer.

She takes a deep breath, letting it all out a moment later and pushes open the kitchen door leading to the dining room. Four pairs of eyes are on her immediately.

“Where’s Liam?” Louis asks a second later.

“He’s… he’s c-coming,” she stammers, making it so fucking obvious that she’s flustered.

“You alright?” Harry asks her as she takes her seat next to him.

“My uh, my head still feels wonky,” she says. She knows it’s a cop-out, and really not fair to Harry to make him worry about her more than he already is, but she doesn’t know what else to say.

“I’m so sorry, love,” Harry says, sending her a worried look.

“Liam. Finally,” Zayn says, causing Maxine’s heart to race.

Her eyes tentatively look up just to make sure Liam is clothed this time, and she is met with his eyes staring back at her. She can’t tell if he’s cross or what, and it makes everything more awkward in her world. Liam sits down at the table across from her and she can’t help but look up at him again. And there he is looking at her too.

“ _Ahem_. Max,” Harry says, clearing his throat.

“Huh?” Max asks, looking over at her best friend who is giving her an odd look.

“Earth to Max,” Harry laughs, nudging her with his elbow.

“What did you say?” She asks, feeling a bit out of it.

“I asked you if you could pass the bread,” Harry laughs and she notices that all the boys are now staring at her, including Liam.

“Oh, sorry. Sorry,” she says, grabbing the basket it is in and passes it to him.

Max stays quiet throughout dinner, trying to focus on anything other than the images of Liam’s naked body that float through her mind, but it’s of no use. She is certain her cheeks are in a constant state of blush. But for some reason Liam seems unphased by what happened, keeping up cheery conversations with all the other lads.

Max offers to clean up after dinner and Harry happily tells her he’ll help, even though he’s the one who cooked. All the other lads make up excuses of things they need to be doing other than the dishes and scoot off to do them.

“Are you okay, Maxine?” Harry asks as they begin to clear the table.

“Uh, sure,” Max says, giving him an odd look.

“You’ve been acting a bit odd since I hit you with that ball,” Harry points out.

“No. Not since then,” Max says under her breath.

“What do you mean ‘not since then’?” Harry asks, his head quirking to the side as he looks at her. Max lets out a sigh and looks back at him with a look of admission.

“What’s going on?” Harry asks.

“Will you promise not to tell anyone? And I mean _anyone_. You can’t even tell Louis,” Max tells him.

“I tell Louis everything,” Harry says simply.

“Fine. You can’t tell anyone who isn’t Louis Tomlinson. And Louis can’t tell anyone either,” Max huffs, rolling her eyes in the process.

“I promise,” Harry says finally.

“I saw Liam’s penis,” Maxine blurts out, causing Harry to choke on the saliva in his mouth.

“ _Christ_ , Max. You could have warned me,” Harry laughs as he coughs, trying to expel the moisture from his windpipe.

“I’m sorry. I just feel really weird about it,” Max tells him.

“Start from the beginning. And _what!?”_ Harry says, widening his eyes at her.

“I accidentally walked in on him after he got out of the shower tonight,” she says sheepishly.

“Tonight? Like right before dinner?” Harry asks.

“Yes. _Literally_ right before dinner,” Max says as her cheeks heat up.

“Was it big?” Harry asks immediately.

“Harry! _Jesus_ ,” Max laughs, giving him a swat on the arm.

“It’s an honest question,” he laughs.

“And one only you would ask!” She too laughs.

“Have you talked to him about it?” Harry asks, furrowing his brows in question.

“Have you _lost_ your mind?” Max nearly yells at him.

“What? What’s the big deal?” Harry points out.

“When exactly do you think we would have had time to talk about it? As we sat across the dinner table from one another?” She asks him incredulously.

“Maybe you won’t feel so weird if you have a chat about it,” Harry offers.

“You’ve definitely lost your mind. I can’t do that, Harry,” Max says, shaking her head as the two of them walk into the kitchen with the dirty dishes.

“So you’re just going to have like, an elephant in the room between you two from now on?” Harry asks curiously.

“What would you have me say? ‘Eh, Liam. Sorry for walking in on you naked. Nice penis, by the way.’ Not _bloody_ likely,” Max huffs.

“So it _was_ a nice penis?” Harry smirks at her and Max lets out an exasperated sigh.

“You’re absolutely no help,” she says as she begins to clear the uneaten food off the plates.

“Just tell him you’d like to see it again sometime,” Harry says as he begins to fill the sink with dish water.

“Shut it!” Max screeches as she flings a dirty napkin at him.

“You do have a _thing_ for Liam, don’t you?” Harry asks, eyeing her knowingly.

“Could you say it any louder? _Jesus_ , Harry,” Max says, looking around the room, hoping none of the lads are eavesdropping on the other side of the door.

“I didn’t hear a denial,” he says, smirking at her.

“Because there isn’t one,” she admits under her breath.

“I knew it!” Harry says with a big smile on his face.

“Please, just keep it to yourself. I don’t need things to become weird around here,” Max pleads, hoping Harry will.

“Yeah, fine. But I don’t know why you think you need to be a good little girl all the time. You’re in your twenties. It’s time for experimenting. Stop being such a prude,” Harry says, swatting her lightly with a towel.

“I just don’t want to mess up the dynamic of the house, okay. I don’t want anything to get awkward,” Max tells him.

“Live a little,” Harry says as he begins to wash the dishes, leaving Max with a mess of things to think about.

What could go wrong if she and Liam were to hook-up? It could be good, right? It could be something that makes her truly happy. And she hasn’t felt that way in a long time, about anyone. In the end Max decides that if, and only if, Liam for some miraculous reason comes on to her, then she isn’t going to say no. But of course, she knows it is a long shot.

…

Nearly a week passes and the _incident_ is not brought up again. Max doesn’t mention it and neither does Liam. Life goes on as if it never even happened. And Max is eternally grateful things didn’t get awkward between them. But another small part of her was truly hoping that Liam might use that moment as an opening to start something new. But he didn’t, and Max finds herself home alone on a Saturday night with a sink full of dirty dishes and a stupid English Lit paper to write while everyone else is out living their exciting lives. At least she has a full bottle of wine all to herself.

As she turns up the volume on her phone, listening to a _Spotify_ playlist she made earlier, she begins the tedious task of washing the dishes. The dancing and the singing comes next. She quickly learns that dancing around the kitchen with a full glass of wine isn’t the best choice when it spills down the front of her pajama bottoms.

“ _Ugh_ , alcohol abuse,” she groans, feeling the sticky wetness against her thigh.

She stands there for a moment, contemplating what she’s going to do, until she decides to just take her bottoms off. She’s home alone after all. She’ll have the dishes cleaned up by the time any of the lads get home anyway.

She peels off the wet pajamas and throws them over one of the stools at the breakfast table before she walks back to the sink to begin washing the dishes again. It doesn’t take long for her to get into a rhythm with the dishes and they fly by one-by-one as she sings along to the songs, dancing in place in her pale pink undies.

“’ _And we’ll never be royals… royals. It don’t run in our blood. That kind of lux just ain’t for us. We crave a different kind of buzz. Let me be your ruler… ruler. You can call me queen bee. And baby I’ll rule… I’ll rule, I’ll rule. Lemme live that fantasy_ ,’” Max sings as she sways her hips with the song.

“Fantastic.”

Max spins on her heels toward the voice, her heart in her throat as she wobbles slightly on her feet. She finds Liam leaning against the kitchen door frame with a smug smirk on his face. She quickly swats her hand back to silence the music and fumbles with her phone for a moment before the music cuts off and the phone clatters against the countertop.

“Absolutely brilliant, Max,” Liam says, bouncing his eyebrows at her as he pushes away from the door frame, walking toward her.

Maxine is frozen in place watching Liam as he advances toward her. She’s unable to breathe – not with him looking at her with bedroom eyes. But instead of wrapping his arms around her and sweeping her off her feet, Liam bypasses her altogether, grabbing a glass from the cupboard to pour himself some water from the sink.

Liam turns, resting his body against the sink basin and eyes Max again as he takes a drink from the glass. Maxine notices then that Liam is obviously drunk; his eyes glassy, his stance wobbly. It causes her to relax slightly, taking a sip of the wine glass that’s still in her hand.

“I guess it’s only fair for me to see you like this since you’ve seen me completely naked.”

Maxine’s head spins as Liam mentions the _unmentionable_ event between the two of them nearly a week before. It’s only then she notices how all the alcohol she’s consumed is affecting her. Her cheeks flush even hotter than before; her feet are unsteady underneath her; her mind is swimming.

“ _Oh, god_ ,” she whispers, her fingers coming up to touch her lips.

Liam lets out a light laugh before downing the rest of the water in his glass, setting it down on the countertop next to the sink before he replies, “shit happens.”

“Shit happens?” Maxine chokes out as her eyebrows mar into a look of confusion.

“Yeah, why not?” Liam shrugs his shoulders.

“I’ve seen your _penis_ and you say ‘shit happens’?” Maxine blurts out, causing her eyes to shoot open as wide as saucers, realizing what she’s said. She’s drawn more attention to the _unmentionable_ event.

“You’ve seen my penis and now I’ve seen you in your knickers. I suppose we’re even.” Liam shrugs again and Maxine shakes her head, trying to comprehend how that would make them even in any universe. “Are we not even?”

Maxine’s mouth goes dry as her wide eyes meet Liam’s once again, “what?”

“Well, have at it. Get naked then.”

Maxine nearly chokes on air, _“what?”_

Liam lets out a howl of laughter as he watches her reaction. Maxine immediately relaxes and rolls her eyes. “Screw off, Payno.”

“I just might, having seen you in this light.”

Maxine goes rigid again at the thought of Liam thinking of her during his _alone_ time.

“My jammies got wet! I had to take them off,” she immediately defends herself.

“Even better.”

“ _From the wine_ , you cad!” Max reaches out to smack Liam’s arm, but misses almost completely, barely nicking the hard muscle of his bicep. Her wine sloshes in her glass and she lets out a huff as she retreats back. Liam chuckles as he pushes away from the sink, walking around her to head toward the doorway. Her eyes follow his backside until he turns to look at her.

“You’re beautiful, Maxine,” Liam says with a small smile, his eyes staring into hers from across the room. Her heart does flips in her chest as she stares back at him, at a loss for words. “’Night, Max.”

“’Night,” she whispers as Liam disappears from the room, leaving her alone.

She stands there for longer than completely necessary in the same spot, holding the wine glass close to her chest, thinking about what just happened. Did Liam, the object of her desire, just call her beautiful? Unable to shake the thought from her mind, she takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly trying her best to rationalize it as an adult.

He was just being nice? Well, it wasn’t exactly necessary to call her beautiful if he was just being nice. He’s drunk? He certainly is, but doesn’t the truth come out when you’re drunk?

Maxine’s mind spirals. Liam Payne actually thinks she’s beautiful? Tipping the wine glass against her lips, she downs the rest of the contents before setting her glass on the countertop next to Liam’s. It’s been a weird night. She needs to get some sleep.

She walks slowly up the stairs into the dark hallway, wanting nothing more than to just sink into her bed and fall into a peaceful slumber. She is hoping the wine will help her with that. She knows she hasn’t finished her English Lit paper, but there’s still time.

Just as she walks by the bathroom the door swings open. The light shines out, casting a glow all around Liam as he stands in the doorway wearing only a pair of navy blue pajama bottoms, hanging mouth-wateringly low on his hips.

“Maxine,” he says, nearly sighing her name.

“Liam,” she says, her voice coming out breathy.

“We’ve got to stop meeting like this,” he quips, smirking at her as his eyes wash up her bare legs.

“Yeah,” she whispers, her mouth going dry as her eyes focus on his bare chest.

He takes a step toward her and she feels every muscle in her body tense in anticipation. Maybe if she wasn’t sexually attracted to him from the beginning, then perhaps she could control herself. Perhaps she could resist him. But _god damn it_ , where is the fun in that?

“Sleep tight, Max,” Liam breathes, and she swears to all that is mighty he’s purposely speaking to her in a seductive tone.

“’Night, Liam,” she breathes, unable to contain the lust in her voice. Neither one of them make a move to go to bed. They just stand there staring at one another.

Max could swear she feels her heart beating out of her chest at just the thought of kissing him. And that might be the reason she takes a step toward him – the thought of kissing him. It also might be the reason she places her hand on his bare chest.

Liam slips his hands down to her waist and pulls her closer and Max can no longer think straight. Her whole mind floods with images of Liam’s naked body. She wants him. She wants him badly. And she knows it’s the reason she leans up and plants her lips against his.


	3. Part Three

It takes Liam less than a second to kiss her back and she feels all sorts of justification for being the first one to make a move after she told herself she’d wait for him to – since of course he seems to want it just as badly.

Max’s arms wrap loosely around Liam’s neck as the kiss deepens. She’s in a daze as their tongues tangle together. This has been something she’s wanted since he moved into the house. This beautiful boy and his beautiful body and beautiful mouth could be all hers if she just allowed herself to break the rules.

It isn’t until Liam presses her up against the wall that she is truly convinced she would be underneath him by the end of the night. She likes his dominance way too much.

When she feels his hands grasp onto her bum, she lets out a moan against his mouth. She wants him to touch her everywhere. She _needs_ it. A split second later he lifts her up against him and she wraps her legs around his waist, feeling like maybe she’s somebody else for a moment. She isn’t one to lose herself so easily with someone else. Usually she’s level-headed and responsible. But right now, she just wants to throw caution into the wind and let Liam fuck her up against the wall.

When she feels his hardness rub up against her, she lets out another moan against his mouth. This time louder.

“ _Maxine_ ,” Liam moans as his lips trail down her jawline.

Her name on his lips is the sweetest thing she’s ever heard in her life and suddenly all she wants to do is feed him pleasure until the only name he knows is hers.

Liam rocks against her again and Max moans as her head tips back against the wall. Liam’s stubble burns across the skin of her neck, but in a good way. His lips are hot and wet and torturous against her sensitive flesh and she wants to feel them across every inch of her body.

“Your room,” she manages to breathe between ragged breaths and he obliges, gripping her tightly in his arms as he pulls her away from the wall.

The wine is making her do and say things she wouldn’t normally. But she’s grateful for it. Because she’s certain she’d have gone to bed after saying goodnight to him instead of making a move.

Liam kicks open his door, carrying Max into his room before kicking the door shut, giving them the privacy they need. A second later, Liam lies Max down on his bed, pressing himself up against her, their kisses never ceasing. When she hears Liam moan against her mouth, a jolt of excitement shoots through her. He is moaning because of _her_.

_Dear God_. She is so turned on.

“Oh, god, _Maxine_ …” Liam says, the words sounding like more of a sigh than anything. It sends goose bumps across her flesh.

A second later, he connects their lips again and their tongues tangle together and Max’s mind is a jumbled mess. She has wanted this for so long. _So long_. She almost can’t believe it’s even happening.

Her train of thought is immediately halted as Liam presses himself against her again. _Oh, god_. He feels so good against her. They’re not much in the way of them connecting – just a pair of panties and his pajama bottoms. That’s it. And she wants it. She wants _him_.

“Liam. _Oh, god, Liam_ ,” she moans as he bucks against her again.

Liam bites his lip, looking down at her and it’s possibly the sexiest thing she has ever seen. He is incredible. She can see the lust swirling in his eyes and knows they’ve already crossed a line together. She knows if she were to stop them that second, it wouldn’t matter because they’ve already gone too far to look back. They’ve already made a silent commitment to each other to fulfill the sexual tension between them. She knows they can never go back to being just friends and flatmates. She broke her own rule. But she also knows she doesn’t care much.

Liam leans down, taking her lips with his again and she can feel his hand slowly slipping up the front of her shirt, tickling her skin on its way up. She wants him to touch her and never stop touching her. She wants his hands to touch places she hasn’t been touched in a long time. She _needs_ it. But before her wish is fulfilled, she feels his hand slip out of her shirt, only to slide down her leg, pulling her thigh up against his hip. He digs himself into her again as she tips her head back and lets out a pleasure-filled sigh. In that moment, she realizes it doesn’t need to be just his hands touching her. _Oh, no_. She needs so much more from him.

Liam’s dark eyes meet hers with an intense hunger and she almost can’t handle it. She wants to whimper. She wants to scream, but she knows she needs to be quiet – only because there could be ears lurking around. Who knows who could be home by now?

“You’re so beautiful,” Liam whispers, looking down at her and her breathing hitches in her throat. She isn’t expecting him to get real with her. He’s said it to her before, in the kitchen. But even then she didn’t believe it. How could the boy she’s fancied for months on end think she’s beautiful? Life isn’t supposed to give you everything you want. And yet, here he is.

“ _Liam_ …” She whimpers, not sure of what to say.

“You are, Max. You’re gorgeous,” he tells her again. Every compliment from his lips sends a wave of pleasure right through her body.

And instead of giving him a proper response, Max’s hands roughly grab for the waistband of his pajama bottoms, wanting him to be naked. She wants to be naked with him too. She wants to feel him, to feel his love.

She lets her hands snake around his hips, thrusting them into the back of his bottoms, grasping onto his bum as she leans up to kiss him. She’s immediately rewarded when she realizes he’s not wearing any boxers. She feels Liam smile against her lips and she can’t help but smile too.

Max slowly begins to push his waistband down as the two of them kiss. It’s quite evident to her how turned on he is. He is so hard, it’s a wonder he has any blood left in the rest of his body at all.

A moment later, Liam breaks the kiss by standing up at the end of the bed and she looks up to watch him. She didn’t get his bottoms down very far, but she can see a little further down his treasure trail and it’s so rewarding.

“Come here,” Liam says, holding out his hands for her. She immediately takes them and he pulls her into the seated position.

He leans in to kiss her again as she feels his fingers grasp for the hem of her shirt. A moment later, he is pulling it over her head, breaking their kiss only momentarily to rid her of it. His hands come up, cupping her bra-clad breasts in them and she immediately darts her hands behind herself to undo the clasp. Liam smiles against her lips again when he feels the bra go lax in his hands.

“Magic,” Max breathes against his lips.

“Well, I can make it disappear,” Liam says with a wide smile as he tosses the bra onto the floor somewhere behind him. Max lets out a laugh as Liam leans in to kiss her again. He presses his body towards her, kneeling on the bed again and she softly lays back against his mattress.

“You’re incredible,” Liam coos as he looks down at her, his hands sliding gently up her chest.

He kisses her again before trailing his lips down the length of her jaw, then down her throat and chest before his mouth wraps around her left nipple.

“ _Ohh_ , my god,” Max hisses as pleasure engulfs her body. She’s certain he can make her come by just doing that, but she wants to feel him inside of her. She wants to come undone with him.

“ _Please_ ,” Max begs as Liam trails his mouth across the valley between her breasts and sucks in the next nipple.

“ _Liam_ ,” she whimpers as her fingers fist in his hair, his tongue swirling around the sensitive skin.

A moment later, she feels his blunt fingertips scrape down her hips, gathering the material of her panties with them on their descent down her legs. His mouth kisses a hot trail all the way down her torso and her muscles jump and tighten as he goes. She can’t help the writhing of her body below his. She is completely under his control. She is _his_.

As Liam carefully slips her panties from her body, Max can only _try_ to control her breathing. Her mind is spiraling into oblivion every second they’re together. And she knows it’s only going to get worse… or better, depending how she looks at it.

Max isn’t even in her right mind when she feels Liam’s mouth between her legs. She lets out a loud whimper as her fingers fist in his hair again.

“ _Liam_ ,” she pants as her eyes roll into the back of her head. His tongue is magic… pure and utter magic. It’s been so long since she’s been worshipped by a man and _oh, god,_ Liam was definitely showing her what she’s been missing.

“ _Ohmygodpleasseliamohmygod_ ,” she moans, a jumble of words trailing out of her mouth as she begins to see stars. Her whole entire body tenses up a moment before she feels the release. The pleasure is consuming and she can’t help the loud moan that leaves her lips.

“Come here. Liam, come here,” she says desperately, trying to pull him up to her. She wants to feel him. She wants him so much. He obliges by crawling up her body, his eyes black with lust.

“Please,” she coos against his lips before she kisses him, tasting herself on his tongue.

She can feel his body move as he pushes down his pajamas bottoms with his free hand, just enough to free himself. And she can feel him between her legs. They’re so close – their naked bodies pressed together. And he doesn’t have to do much. He just bucks his hips forward and she feels him slide into her as she lets out a low sigh against his lips. _Oh, god_. She’s in Heaven. She can’t believe how easy it is – how everything just falls into place.

Liam pulls back minutely before pressing into her once again, beginning a slow rhythm. With every thrust forward he fills her more and more, and she can feel the tears prickling at the back of her eyes. _Oh, Liam_.

Max’s arms grip tightly around Liam’s shoulders as he continues. With every give and take of his body, hers reacts to him with tingles of pleasure that race through her, vibrating out of every extremity. She vaguely recalls how Liam’s breathing becomes more labored the faster he goes. But she’s much too preoccupied. As his pace picks up, Max can’t even form an intelligent thought. She can only feel the pleasure and listen to the heaviness of their breathing.

And then she can feel the unmistakable pull in her loins. She can feel the tingling in her toes. And she’s whimpering, wanting it to consume her so badly.

“Oh, Liam. _Yes_ ,” she whimpers loudly. And she can feel his pace pick up even further.

As her orgasm ripples through her entire body, Liam leans down, capturing one of her nipples between his teeth, tugging on it lightly. And the sharpness mixed with the intensity of her orgasm throws her for a loop. She lets out a loud moan as her entire body seems to explode with pleasure.

“My god. You are the most beautiful thing ever,” Liam coos as he watches her. Max doesn’t even have time to feel bashful over his words because he continues on, which seems to prolong the pleasure she’s feeling.

Max feels completely wrecked as Liam continues his heightened rhythm inside of her. His grunts are so unbelievably sexy, all she can do is watch him. Max slips her hands down his body to his bum, helping him along – pushing him deeper and harder into her, which seems to help him find his own end. He leans up in one final thrust – his mouth open, his eyes shut as a low guttural moan escapes from his throat. His body rocks forward one last time and his arms seem to give out as he collapses against her, his face buried deep within the nape of her neck. All Max can do is wrap her arms tightly around him, kissing the top of his shoulder blade.

“ _Mmm_ ,” he moans against her skin and she giggles because it tickles.

A moment later, Liam rolls off of her body onto the bed next to her, his eyes closed and she watches him. He’s _absolutely_ gorgeous. His entire body is filled with a thin sheathing of perspiration and his cheeks are rosy with heat. He is perfect. Absolutely perfect.

It takes him a second or two to open his eyes, but when he does a wide smile turns up his lips and she can’t help but smile back at him.

“Hi,” he says quietly, blinking his unnaturally long eyelashes at her.

“Hi,” she says, biting at her bottom lip. She feels bashful, even though she knows she shouldn’t.

“Will you stay with me tonight?” He asks her, looking hopeful.

“I’m not going anywhere,” she breathes, smiling coyly at him.

“Good,” he coos as his eyes close again, pulling her body to his and she cuddles up underneath his arm without another word.


End file.
